Sweet and sour

The Fish Gate was rebuilt by the sons of Hassenaah. They laid its beams and put its doors and bolts and bars in place. Meremoth son of Uriah, the son of Hakkoz, repaired the next section. Next to him Meshullam son of Berekiah, the son of Meshezabel, made repairs, and next to him Zadok son of Baana also made repairs. The next section was repaired by the men of Tekoa, but their nobles would not put their shoulders to the work under their supervisors...

Shallum son of Hallohesh, ruler of a half-district of Jerusalem, repaired the next section with the help of his daughters. Nehemiah 3:3-12

Last time we looked at Nehemiah 3, a story of a difficult task tackled and brought to completion in the service of God: the rebuilding of the ruined walls of Jerusalem. I asked what we might be able to apply to our lives from what, on the face of it, seems little more than a catalogue of names. And the obvious point is that we too are called upon to build. For us, what we build is the church – not its bricks and mortar necessarily, but its spiritual life.

The key points are clear: the people in Nehemiah 3 worked (a) under strong, wise supervision, (b) in good co-operation with one another and – not forgetting the obvious - (c) very hard. And this shows us how we should approach our service for God in the church.

So let Nehemiah 3 inspire us to be good church members! – like those other largely unknown people we meet in Romans 16.

Last time there wasn’t space to add a couple of other points which stand out from the chapter if we take the trouble to read it carefully. One of them is rather sad, the other rather delightful – I think of them as sweet and sour.

The sour one comes in verse 5: “The next section was repaired by the men of Tekoa, but their nobles would not put their shoulders to the work under their supervisors”.

Oh! So it wasn’t all sweetness and light. There was a tiny minority who declined to roll up their sleeves and play their part. The “nobles of Tekoa” seem to have been, in fact, not particularly noble at all.

What was their problem? We could speculate all day long, but there wouldn’t be a lot of point; the most likely reason is surely the obvious one: they regarded such work as beneath their dignity: “Come on now, Nehemiah, surely you can’t expect people like us to spend our time hefting great lumps of stone about! Whatever next?”

Never mind that the work was both vital and urgent. Never mind the onus on leaders to set an example to the “ordinary” people. Never mind that this work was the work of God himself. No: you wouldn’t find the nobles of Tekoa getting their delicate hands dirty.

God’s people, both then and now, aren’t quite perfect – to put it mildly. There will always be those who “don’t show willing”, as we say. Sad! – but let’s notice that they are the main losers, for, as we said last time, the real joy and satisfaction belong to those who do their part cheerfully and whole-heartedly.

(It's good to notice, by the way, that the ordinary people of Tekoa didn’t allow their nobles’ attitude to infect them: we meet them again in verse 27, and what are they doing? Helping out on another stretch of the wall, that’s what. I rather like the “men of Tekoa”, don’t you?)

“God loves a cheerful giver” said Paul (2 Corinthians 9:7). Are we cheerful givers when it comes to the service of God? “Serve the Lord with gladness” the psalms tell us; to which I always add under my breath “or don’t bother to serve him at all”.

But now the sweet detail that’s also easy to miss.

In verse 12 we read: “Shallum son of Hallohesh, ruler of a half-district of Jerusalem, repaired the next section with the help of his daughters”.

That comes as a bit of a surprise doesn’t it? There’s nothing in Old Testament law to forbid women from carrying out manual labour. But I suspect it was fairly unusual, certainly the sort of heavy work that must have been called for. So Nehemiah 3:12 brought a smile to my face the first time I noticed it.

Perhaps my imagination is running a bit wild, but I can’t help picturing Shallum as an ageing, grey-haired man surrounded by a gaggle of feisty young women telling him in no uncertain terms that there’s absolutely no reason why they can’t do their bit - so will he please just go and sit down. (Note, too, that Shallum, like the nobles of Tekoa, was a man of some status; but that didn’t stop him playing his part.)

One day God will bring to completion the “building” of his church, the “bride of the Lamb” – and, boy, will she be beautiful! Just re-read Revelation 21 and allow it to dazzle your imagination.

And the question is not just “Will I be part of that church?” but “Will I play my part – like the men of Tekoa, and like Shallum and his daughters – in the building of it?”

There’s work to be done. Let’s get on and do it!

Father, you call us to serve you in many different ways. Please help me to do so cheerfully, not counting the cost but mindful only of the privilege. Amen.